The oldest restaurant in London is often dismissed as a tourist trap, and it’s true that it is on the dining map for a huge number of visitors to London. However, with its traditional dining room, service with old-world charm and classic British dishes on the menu, Rules still offers a chance to dine well and be cosseted from the outside world for a few hours. Add to this the recent addition of one of the best cocktail bars in London under the auspices of Brian Silva, and Rules looks like it has at least another 200 years in the tank.

Rules is close to the tourist mayhem of Covent Garden, but once you walk into the restaurant, you step back to a more leisurely time when the customer was king. The dining room has seen little change in 200 years, with pictures from its illustrious past covering the walls and red velvet booths offering comfortable places to linger over a meal, while the formal but unfussy service takes care of everything else. It’s hardly modern or cutting-edge either in the food or the ambiance, but well worth a visit to experience an environment where dining is still considered glamorous.

Enjoy a well-made cocktail in the excellent new bar surrounding the dining room before heading down to eat. While the menu is long, stick to tried-and-tested dishes and you won’t go too far wrong. Begin with a dozen oysters, dressed crab or potted shrimps. To follow, go for the seasonal game such as partridge, hare, grouse, or venison, much of which is hunted or caught on land owned by the restaurant itself. They are cooked perfectly and served with all the correct accompaniments. Alternatively, try a classic steak and kidney pudding with an oyster added for richness. For dessert, stay on the traditional path with a treacle sponge, trifle or even the infamous Spotted Dick, plumped out with raisins. Wash your meal down with a wine from the extensive list, which includes bottles ranging from £21 and upward.